Meet Lauren

I have spent the last decade as a local news reporter in the Midwest and South telling the human stories behind complex issues of health, housing and homelessness.

Fan of strong coffee, public records and the Great Lakes.

See my work

I am local news lover who lives to tell a good story and learn something cool in the process.

I am of four journalists selected for the O'Brien Fellowship in Public Service Journalism at Marquette University for 2022-23. I am completing a solutions-focused reporting project about unsafe rental housing and tenant rights and mentoring student interns assigned to my project.

This year marked a return to my home state of Wisconsin and all the cheese-based products I could consume.

Before that I covered health at The Blade in Toledo, Ohio, where I focused on systemic issues such as opioid addiction and lead poisoning. Next up was a move to North Carolina to cover affordable housing and homelessness for The Charlotte Observer, a position partially funded through Report by America.

I believe journalism is a team sport. I've done some of my best, most satisfying work in partnership, whether it's with a brilliant photojournalist in my newsroom or collaborating with other outlets to do more ambitious work than any of us could do alone.

I am a 2014 graduate of Northwestern University, where I studied journalism and Spanish. Outside of work you can find me getting overly competitive in a game of bar trivia or honing my skills on the pottery wheel.